Wednesday , 9 October 2024

Evolution of Ice Cream

The Evolution of Ice Cream :

 Ice Cream- Evolution of ice cream

Early chilled delicacies: Many nations claim to have invented Ice Cream(derived from earlier- iced cream or cream ice) but origins of ice cream date back to China’s T’ang period around 200BC,where they packed soft milk and rice mixture in the snow. Roman Emperor Nero (37–68)  brought  ice from the mountains and combined it with fruit toppings. In 10th century ice cream was widespread in Arabian cities where it is prepared with milk or cream, often with some yogurt, and was flavoured with rosewater,dried fruits and nuts. This was precursor to Persian faloodeh.

Portrait of Marco Polo
Portrait of Marco Polo

Marco Polo visited China and took the technique of making ice cream to Italy which was only enjoyed by  Yuan Dynasty and was a royal secret.From then Italians were undisputed masters in this field.When Italian duchess Catherine de’ Medici married the Duke of Orléans  in 1533, she is said to have brought with her to France some Italian chefs who had recipes for flavoured ices or sorbets.Few records say that    England had discovered ice cream earlier than Italians.

The infographic below depicts few historical facts about ice cream.

evolution of ice cream
History of ice cream-Infographic

The term ice cream:- The name iced creams was given because the appelation described the process.In 1688 the word “iced cream” was  included in Oxford English Dictionary.The term “ice cream” showed up in 1744.Even before this the recipe for ice cream was published in Mrs. Mary Eales’s Receipts in London in 1718.

Mrs. Mary Eales's Receipts 1733-To ice cream(Source :Wikipedia)

Take tin ice pots, fill them with any sort of cream you like, either plain or sweetened, or fruit in it; shut your pots very close; to six pots you must allow eighteen or twenty pounds of Ice, breaking the Ice very small; there will be some great pieces, which lay at the bottom and top: You must have a pail, and lay some straw at the bottom; then lay in your Ice, and put in amongst it a pound of bay salt; set in your pots of cream, and lay ice and salt between every pot, that they may not touch; but the Ice must lie round them on every side; lay a good deal of ice on the top, cover the pail with straw, set it in a cellar where no sun or light comes, it will be froze in four hours, but it may stand longer; than take it out just as you use it; hold it in your hand and it will slip out. When you would freeze any sort of fruit, either cherries, raspberries, currants, or strawberries, fill your tin pots with the fruit, but as hollow as you can; put to them lemonade, made with spring water and lemon juice sweetened; put enough in the pots to make the fruit hang together, and put them in ice as you do cream.

Technology : The use of ice mixed with salt to lower the temperature of ingredients and the invention of wooden bucket freezer with rotary paddles helped in rapid growth of ice cream industry.Nancy Johnson invented hand-cranked freezer in 1846 which established the basic method of ice cream manufacture.

WhiteMountainFreezer
Ice Cream maker- hand cranked

Jacob Fussell established the first large-scale commercial ice cream plant in 1851.Then the ice cream shop or soda fountain has become an icon of American culture and the advent of mechanical refrigeration has helped it.

Then as the time passed the ice cream has evolved greatly from varieties like Soft ice cream,Eskimo Pie, Haagen-Dazs,Dove Bar and Good Humor Ice Cream Bar.Many flavors where invented which include Bacon,Black and Tan,Blue Moon,Brown bread ,Butter Brickle,Butter Pecan,Chocolate chip cookie dough,Chocolate,Chubby Hubby, Cookies and Cream,Cornish,Crab,Grape nut,Green tea,Hokey pokey ,Hubby Hubby,Late Night Snack,Mint chocolate chip,Neapolitan ,Raspberry Ripple,Rocky road ,Schweddy Balls ,Spumoni,Stephen Colbert’s AmeriCone Dream,Superman ,Taste the Lin-Sanity,Tutti frutti ,Vanilla,Vermonster,Yes Pecan etc..,

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About Sai Prashanth

IT professional. Love to write.